So The Story Goes
by Kimali Lautoka
Summary: Lily had always greeted James' advances with stone cold denial. Once they're made Head Boy and Girl, though, could things change? Cliché? Yes. Fun? Of course. Obvious LJ.
1. Young Pilgrims

**So The Story Goes**

**Kimali**** Lautoka**

**A/N:** Psst. Guess what? I'm baaaaaaaack!

Lily and James fics have always been a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine, although I have never had the inspiration to write one. Until now. Muahahaha! Anyways, this picks up near the end of the summer before James and Lily's seventh year. I haven't written ANYTHING in over a year, so please please _please_bear with me as I try to get back into the swing of things.

The chapter titles don't really have anything to do with the content of the chapters; they're just the song I was listening to while writing the chapter. It's kinda like creating a soundtrack to the story. Now that that's said…

I'll just say right now that if you don't like this fanfic, you can SUCK IT. Nasty comments are a waste of both your time and mine.

**Disclaimer: **All copy written characters belong to someone who is not me. Because I am not J. K. Rowling. I have enough faith in you guys to be able to recognize the original characters. (This applies to all chapters.)

Chapter 1: Young Pilgrims

The Shins

It had been a relatively quiet, peaceful summer for one Lily Evans at number sixteen, Crown Close. Lily rested her folded arms on the sill of her window and breathed in the sweet floral scents of summer's dying days. It was almost impossible for the beautiful redhead to believe that, in two weeks, she would be starting her seventh and final year as Head Girl of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and –

"AAAAAUGHHHH!" Lily nearly jumped out of her skin as a wail that sounded peculiarly like a combination between a banshee and her elder sister Petunia reached her ears from the kitchen below her room. "Lilyyyy! Get this- this _thing _away from me!" the voice screeched. Definitely Petunia.

Lily had to double-take to make sure she was seeing correctly. Petunia stood as far from the kitchen window as possible, brandishing a pan with freshly scrambled eggs escaping the edges at what was unmistakably the Potters' eagle owl, Darius. Darius watched Petunia peculiarly, thoroughly puzzled by her behavior, until Lily walked through the doorway and he flew to her shoulder. Petunia shuffled to the right, spilling slippery eggs in her wake. _Not again_, thought Lily as she unfolded the piece of parchment addressed to her in James Potter's scribble.

_Evans-_

_All right, I hope? Hey, guess what! I'm Head Boy! And if the rumors are true (as I suspect they are), you're Head Girl. Isn't that great? But to the point. Even though you've turned me down all summer, and all last year, and every year before that, I thought I'd try my luck again. Would you consider going out with me before summer holiday ends?_

_Yours truly,_

_James Potter_

_He's pathetic_, Lily thought as she reread James' letter. After every letter she'd ever received from James Potter, Lily had always scribbled back a quick 'Grow up.' On this particular day, however, she was feeling rather forgiving. It could have been from the August heat, or just the sight of Petunia's breakfast endeavor falling to the floor that made her feel compelled to feel, well, sorry for James. Lily sat down at the kitchen table where she easily located a Muggle ink pen and began to write. "Petunia, could you give Darius a biscuit?" Lily distractedly asked her sister.

Petunia gaped at Lily like she had just sprouted another head. "Are you mad! That thing will peck my hand off!"

Lily didn't look up from her letter. "He won't peck your hand off, don't be daft. Just throw him something to eat." Lily could hear Petunia grumble as she tossed a stale cracker at the bird, almost hitting him. Darius hooted in alarm, which caused Petunia to jump and shriek.

Ignoring the commotion, Lily read her finished work to herself:

_Potter-_

_Yes, I have been named Head Girl. I have planned to go to Diagon Alley later today. If you can find me, we will talk._

_Lily Evans_

All in all, Lily was quite satisfied with her response. She patiently waited until the owl had devoured the last of his biscuit before handing him back the letter he had brought. Lily had always wanted an owl of her own. Spreading his impressive wings, Darius took flight, playfully swooping towards Petunia before leaving the way he entered. Lily rolled her eyes as her sister screeched yet again. _Honestly_, Lily thought, _you'd think she'd be used to owls by now_.

Lily was about to return to her room when her way was blocked by a large, burly man. Isaac Evans held a pair of garden clippers in his hands and had dirt stains on the knees of his trousers. Lily had always thought he resembled an American lumberjack she'd seen in one of her Muggle textbooks, long before Hogwarts. He shared his straw-like hair color with Petunia, but had blessed Lily with his emerald eyes. Those same gem-like eyes darted around the room menacingly. Are you two alright?" Isaac asked his daughters. "I heard screaming.

Smiling kindly at her father, Lily replied. "It was nothing, Dad. Just an owl dropping a letter off for me."

Petunia, however, wouldn't let it rest at that. Face reddening, Petunia's voice reached an unnaturally shrill pitch. "That owl tried to decapitate me, just like it has almost every day this summer! I'm telling you, Dad, it's one of those _freaks _she goes to that dreadful school with." Petunia's finger pointed accusingly at Lily. "I'll bet it's that Potter who showed up here last summer, polluting the neighborhood with his abnormalities. You know that their kind is going to be the end of us!"

"Put your finger down, Petunia; it looks an awful lot like a wand when you do that," Lily said coldly to her sister, and Petunia gasped in horror as she hurriedly hid her hand behind her back. Lily shuddered to remember last summer when James had stood outside her window all day long, serenading her and begging her for a date. He was only defeated when she had dumped the family cat's litterbox over his head and threatened him serious bodily harm if he ever tried anything like that again. _If only he wasn't such a miserable git, _she absently thought to herself. Lily shook her head of the memory. Petunia had already stormed out of the room before Lily announced her departure. "I'm off to Diagon Alley, then," she said to her father.

Isaac only nodded distractedly as he reached into his pocket and pulled out several large pound notes. "Here," he said to his daughter. "A little Head Girl present from your mum and me. We know how you've always wanted an owl," he said, a bit of a twinkle in his eye. Lily hugged and thanked her father, and with a _pop_ she was gone.

JLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJL

It's short, I know. But it'll do for now. I would greatly appreciate some feedback, and I promise the next chapter will be longer.


	2. Backend of Forever

**A/N:** Okay, now on to Chapter 2! Just as a warning, I have no clue where this story's going.

**Disclaimer:** See previous chapter.

Chapter 2: Backend of Forever

Coheed and Cambria

Lily arrived in the back of the Leaky Cauldron a mere split second later, thankful she had passed her Apparition test the first time around. The only other person she knew of would've easily passed their first time was James Potter –

James Potter? Since when had Lily started mentally complimenting James? And since when had she referred to him by his first name in her head? _It's nothing_, Lily tried to convince herself. _It's just the heat getting to my head_, she thought, ignoring the obvious cooling charm placed over the pub and quite possibly all of Diagon Alley. Lily removed the brick wall to Diagon Alley with her wand and set out for Gringotts, taking advantage of her time before the possibility of James Potter tearing the alley apart in search of her became a reality.

It seemed that every Hogwarts student from a Muggle family decided to visit Diagon Alley that day. The line for the exchange desk was the longest Lily had ever seen it. The parents of younger students stood in awe of the white marble building while their children tugged them along in line. Several students Lily recognized from her year stood ahead of her, counting out the exchange rate from pounds to galleons on their fingers. Lily watched with amusement as several witches and wizards exited the vaults with their pocketed gold, some much greener than they were when they entered (although one particular witch she suspected to be green to begin with). It was finally Lily's turn, and she handed the grouchy goblin the wad of bills her father had given her moments before, receiving quite the pile of gold in return. Sliding the money into a coin purse, Lily exited the shelter of the bank and returned to the scorching sun of outside.

The first stop on Lily's outing was Flourish and Blotts. She'd already gotten most of her school books, but her love of new books, especially of the magical kind, always brought her back in search of something new. Moments later, she left the store with a new copy of _Myth or Magic? Muggle Views on Wizards and Witches_.

Several Potions ingredients and a set of new robes later, Lily was about to take her most eager steps into Eeylops Owl Emporium when she heard an all-too familiar voice call her name from behind. She cringed at what her heat-induced brain had done before turning around.

The summer had done James Potter some good. He'd grown a bit taller since sixth year leaving Lily, who hadn't grown a centimeter since their fourth year, barely reaching the bottom of his chin. He had donned a black Muggle tee shirt with The Ramones, a Muggle band increasing in popularity, splayed across the front in green. The short sleeves showed off some of the toning Quidditch had done to his arm muscles that the school robes normally hid, which Lily found herself enjoying. James' excited, boy-like run towards Lily almost made her want to giggle. When he finally did stop in front of her, however, Lily found that his hazel eyes had lost some of their old manic folly that she found so irritating, and had been replaced by something else; something she didn't quite recognize.

"Lil- er, Evans!" James greeted with a jovial smile. "All right, I suppose?"

Lily just arched her eyebrow in greeting. "Potter." Lily turned on her heel and entered the shop, leaving James behind her.

James' smile faltered for a split second, but was soon restored in full. "Aw, c'mon, Evans. You said if I could find you, we would talk," he said to her in a sing-song fashion.

Hundreds of glittering eyes followed the pair through the store. Lily wouldn't turn to acknowledge James as she roamed about, careful to avoid the owl droppings. "I had a lapse of sanity," she said to James, who had just stepped on her heel for the third time since their entrance. "Do you have to follow me so close?" Lily hissed at James.

"Sorry, sorry," James said in apology, holding his hands in front of him and giving Lily some space. "I was just thinking that since, y'know, we'll be Head Boy and Girl this year, we could maybe, ah, start over."

Lily wasn't sure she'd heard right. James Potter wanted to start over? Lily turned around to look at him. She was tempted to give him her usual glare, but resisted. "Start over?" James nodded. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "And how do you propose we do that?" she asked him

James shoved one hand into the pockets of what Lily noticed were Muggle trousers, while the other one ran through his messy, wind-swept black hair. "We could start by introducing ourselves again." Lily just looked at him. "You know, like 'Hi, my name is James, not Potter'" he said, offering her his right hand in a handshake.

_What the hell_, Lily thought as she gave in to his suggestion. "Hello, my name is Lily, not Evans," she said as she placed her hand in his.

Instead of gripping her hand in a handshake, James lifted her delicate hand to his lips and gave it a quick kiss. "Nice to meet you, Lily." By the way Lily was glaring at him, James knew he had gone too far. "Sorry, Lily. I shouldn't have done that," he said, his eyes glued to the floor.

Lily was amazed. James Potter, the arrogant twat, was actually sorry. Once her anger (and surprise) had subsided, Lily spoke to James. "It's alright," she said quietly. James shyly looked her in the eyes, and smiled. _God, she has beautiful eyes_, he thought. The two of them resumed their search, Lily looking while James shared his little knowledge on owls with her as they went. Lily ended up settling on a tawny barn owl, and James was pleased when she actually accepted his offer of allowing him to carry her previous purchases while she vehemently assured him that it was only because she didn't have enough hands.

Readjusting the load in his arms, James grinned at Lily. "Let's go get a butterbeer," he said. "My treat."

Lily stopped in her tracks and narrowed her almond-shaped eyes at James. "We're clear that this is not a date, correct?" Lily said in what was more a warning than a question.

"Of course, Lily," James said in reassurance. "I just thought you might enjoy the rest after all this extensive shopping." Catching the pleased look on Lily's face, he added, "And maybe we could, you know, talk. As one Head to another." James arched an internal eyebrow once the words, which hadn't come out as he meant, had left his mouth. "Er, I meant –"

He had no need to correct himself, however, as Lily nodded and, for the first time he could remember, smiled at him. "A rest sounds great," she said, "but only if we keep everything school-oriented."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," James said as he held the door to The Leaky Cauldron for Lily, despite his heavy load.

Neither student noticed the pale boy with the long, greasy hair with his nose in some sort of book as they walked in, just as he didn't notice them. James and Lily sat at an empty table and piled the purchases into an empty chair. James left momentarily, but promptly returned with two butterbeers. The talk was forced, mostly consisting of Lily telling James what he could and could not do during the coming year. The tension started to dissolve as the conversation began to stray from Hogwarts and into their daily lives. To James' surprise, the straying was initiated by the one who had at first forbidden it.

"I've got to ask," Lily said after taking a sip of her butterbeer. "Where did you get that shirt? Your family's all wizards, aren't they?"

James nodded and swallowed before answering. "My aunt married a Muggle a couple years ago. I got this from them for Christmas," James explained. "I save it for days like this, when it's hotter than the flames of Hell." Lily smiled and giggled a bit, something she had rarely ever done. "Don't you come from a Muggle family?" James asked Lily out of curiosity.

"Yeah," Lily said, mostly to her remaining butterbeer.

"How do they take to you being a witch?"

"My parents are pretty used to the idea of me being a witch and all, but my sister…" Lily trailed off for a second, before resuming her sentence. "My sister Petunia thinks I'm a freak. Her boyfriend does, too," Lily said as she swished the rest of her drink around in its bottle, "but he's a big oaf anyways."

"You're not a freak, Lily," James reassured her. "Would Dumbledore have made you Head Girl if you were a freak?"

Lily snorted and looked up into James' lopsided grin and twinkling eyes. Those twinkling eyes made a quick venture over Lily's shoulder, and froze on another pair of piercing eyes. "Snivellus," James whispered ferociously.

Lily swiveled around into her chair and came to face a scowling Severus Snape. She could sense impending danger in his presence, something she was going to try to avoid. "Hello, Severus," Lily said with a smile. The voice of her greeting was feeble, and her smile swayed more towards a frown as Snape's only acknowledgement of her was a muttered "mudblood."

James stared coolly at the greasy boy, not hearing the insult. "Washed your hair lately, Snivellus?" James asked in an icy tone. Lily shot warning daggers at him with her emerald eyes, daggers which James either didn't see or ignored.

"Go back to your date with the little mudblood, Potter," Snape said just as frigidly.

James jumped to his feet, his wand held threateningly in front of him. Snape removed his wand from his robes with a flourish as Lily ordered James to sit down. All eyes rested on the trio as disaster unfolded in front of their faces. "Take that back," James growled, disregarding Lily's commands. Sneering, Snape spat dangerously close to Lily.

That was it. With a great roar, James soared over the table he and Lily had been occupying and landed on top of a shocked Severus Snape. Lily's butterbeer teetered dangerously from the sudden commotion before toppling and spilling all down her front. A scream of both surprise and frustration escaped her mouth as she jumped up. James threw punch after agonizing punch at Snape's face, not noticing the mess Snape's blood was making of his hands as his glasses hung by one ear.

"ALRIGHT, YOU THREE, _OUT!_" James and Snape were suddenly ripped from each other by an invisible force and hung suspended in the air. Tom the bartender stood behind the counter, wand raised and face red as a tomato. His wand led the two battling boys from the pub before dropping them to the ground outside. Lily grabbed her previous purchases, as well as Snape's book and both boys' wands before following, her face crimson in both humiliation and fury. Tom grumbled something along the lines of "bloody teenage drama" behind her.

Outside, James wiped his bloodied hands on his trousers and adjusted his glasses while Snape stopped his bleeding (and slightly more crooked) nose with the sleeve of his robes. Both were glowering angrily at each other. Lily held a shaky hand containing a book and a wand to Snape, which he violently snatched as if it had been lying in a pile of hippogriff dung before sulking away.

With one last furious look at James, Lily stomped off in the opposite direction. James chased after her, pleading for her to stop. "Lily, hold on, please! C'mon, stop!" _Everything had been going so well_, James thought regretfully to himself. "Lily, wait!" _Everything until that bloody bastard Snape showed up._

Lily finally did stop, to James' great relief. But when she turned around, that relief turned to dread in the pit of his stomach. He had never seen Lily this angry. A million different emotions passed across her eyes, but the one that stood out the most was pure, utter hatred. Lily threw the extra wand in her hand at James, and it painfully bounced off his chest. A book fell from her arms, but she didn't even notice. Then, with a voice like ice, she spoke to James. "Grow up, Potter." And with a _pop_, she vanished.

James bent down to pick up the book that had fallen to the cobblestone street. When he finally stood up, Sirius Black was standing next to him, a silvery cloak in his hands. James didn't even acknowledge the presence of his best friend. "Tough break, Prongs," Sirius said as he slung his arm around his friend's shoulders. "You were _this close_ to getting her to promise you our first Hogsmeade weekend," Sirius said as he held his free thumb and index finger millimeters apart, "until Snape had to show his ugly face."

"Don't remind me," James said ruefully as he let his friend guide him away."

"Ah, well, better luck next time, mate," Sirius said as he released his friend. "C'mon, let's go set off some dungbombs in Madam Malkin's. We haven't done that in a while."

"Yeah," James said half-heartedly, Lily's forgotten book still in his hand. Sirius would never know, but as James stared at the spot from which Lily disappeared, he wished more than ever that he could follow her home.

JLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJL

**A/N**: So that was Chapter 2 of who knows how many.

Review! Please!


	3. Konstantine

**A/N:** So here's Chapter 3. I'm back on a semi-regular work schedule, and suffer from ADLBD (Attention Defecit Lazy Bum Disorder). Updates won't be as frequent, but your lovely reviews could change that!

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill. I own nothing.

Chapter 3: Konstantine

Something Corporate

Lily lay flat on her stomach in the center of the bedroom she shared with her sister, reading one of the books she had purchased in Diagon Alley almost one week ago. One week ago, when she had actually started to feel something in place of hatred for one James Potter; that is, until he did the very thing she had always hated him for to begin with. One week ago, when he had been the person she'd always wished he was.

Shrill screams echoed up into Lily's room, causing her to jump in surprise. _God, not another owl_, Lily began to think resentfully. James had taken to sending her at least three owls every day, all begging for her forgiveness. Usually, Lily would throw the letter away after reading the first sentence. On one instance, however, she kept the letter as a bookmark.

The screaming started to take on an excited tone, which piqued Lily's interest enough to draw her to the sitting room of number sixteen, Crown Close. Lily apparated to the kitchen, dashed for the sitting room, and skidded to a halt outside the room containing her family and one extra person. This extra person was Vernon Dursley, a stuffy man who had been dating Petunia for the past two years.

Petunia hung by her bony arms to Vernon's neck while bouncing around excitedly, the large man's face getting redder by the second. He kept glancing back and forth between a bouncing Petunia, a shocked Mr. Evans, and a beaming Mrs. Evans in the midst of dabbing her eyes with a tissue. Slightly confused, Lily was about to ask what was going on when she saw a slight glittering on Petunia's finger. Her ring finger. Lily's eyes bulged as a happy grin took over her face for her sister, despite their constant struggles.

It took the occupants of the sitting room to notice Lily standing at the door. Petunia skipped towards Lily and threw her arms around her younger sister in a loving embrace, something she hadn't done in six years. "He proposed!" Petunia gushed. "Vernon proposed!"

No matter how much she disliked Vernon or how different she and her sister were, Lily couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy at Petunia's newfound happiness. "Congrats," Lily wished her sister and her new fiancée before taking a seat next to their mother on the sofa. "When's the wedding?"

"This December," Harriet Evans said, hugging her youngest daughter against her business jacket. Harriet's long brown hair was twisted into a professional bun at the back of her head while her dark blue eyes brimmed with tears of joy. "They've decided to wait until you come home on holiday."

Lily felt an uncomfortable gaze upon her. She turned to see Vernon Dursley gawking at her with a twinge of fear. More than aware of this man's contempt for anything out of the boring ordinary (which included Lily's entire world), Lily shifted awkwardly and spoke to Vernon. "That was very kind of you." Vernon nodded in affirmation.

"Vernon's also offered for me to move in with him until our wedding," Petunia said to no one in particular as she stood next to her future husband, still beaming.

This caused quite a stir on Mr. Evans' part. Rising to his full height, he caused a shorter Vernon to shrink out of intimidation. "Now wait just a damn –"

_CRASH._ A sound equivalent to that of a rhinoceros dropping from mid-air traveled through the ceiling above their heads. Lily instinctively whipped her wand out from her belt and began to creep up the stairs, more than aware of the sudden bulge of Vernon's eyes at the sight of that ten and-a-quarter inch piece of willow. Mrs. Evans followed Lily closely, soon joined by her husband, daughter, and future son-in-law.

Lily's hand shook as she reached for the door latch. With the rise of a dark wizard by the name of Voldemort, the wizarding world was far more dangerous than it had been when she was first introduced. People, both Muggle and magical, had started to go missing, most of whom were found dead not too long after. Fear had taken hold of every member of the magical community and had forced everyone to be on their guard. Finally, deciding Voldemort was not traipsing about her bedroom in broad daylight, Lily opened the door.

Aside from Voldemort himself, the last person Lily wanted to see stood in the middle of the room. James Potter was parked in the center of the bedroom with his wand out, levitating an oak dresser back into place. A gasp from behind him (belonging to Vernon) caused James to turn around, allowing the dresser to crash back to its place on the ground. "Lily!" James exclaimed, a bright smile on his face as he ran a hand through his messy hair.

Aghast, Lily just stood there. That is, until the invisible dam that kept her words back disappeared. "Potter! _What_ in the name of Merlin are you doing in my room!"

"Whatever happened to 'James,' Lily?" James asked, his trademark lopsided grin plastered on his face. A pang of hurt hit James as Lily didn't correct herself. James ran his hand through his hair again, aggravating Lily even more. Despite this annoying habit of his, Lily didn't fail to notice that all sense of joking and playfulness was gone from him for the moment. "Actually, I'm here for two reasons. One," he said as he picked up a book from the floor next to him, "is to return this to you; you left it in Diagon Alley." James handed the book to Lily, which she immediately snatched without taking her eyes from him. "Second," James continued, "I'd like to apologize to you, in person, for what I did. I'm sorry. I don't know what came over…"

The apology trailed off as James glanced down at his feet and caught a glimpse of the contents of a spilled dresser drawer. With his wand, James raised something green into his sight. Something green and lacy, which he noticed bore the initials 'LE.' All sense of decency momentarily left James as he stood there, entire face reddening as he ogled what was obviously a pair of Lily's panties.

Lily's eyes bulged almost clean out of their sockets before narrowing dangerously. She stomped forward and grabbed the underwear out of James' wand grip and slapped him straight across the cheek hard enough to cause a small trickle of blood to flow. For the first time ever, Lily saw something she'd never seen before in the eyes of James Potter: Fear. "Get out, GET OUT, _GET OUT!_" Lily screamed as she chased James towards the window, book perilously raised in a position to strike. James tried to explain away his behavior, but was greeted by a close swipe of the book. Next thing he knew, he was toppling backwards out of the second story window while the Evans family screamed "NO, LILY!" from inside.

James closed his eyes, and with a _crack_ narrowly missed crashing into the unforgiving ground and instead fell onto a sofa in his own house, one that was already occupied by a reading Remus Lupin.

"OW!" Remus yelled, followed by a string of expletives as James' feet landed on his lap, digging his book into a very undesirable area. James apologized as he moved his feet to the floor and stared at them. Remus glanced at James and caught sight of the blood still running down his cheek. "Merlin, what happened?"

"She slapped me," James said flatly. He touched the spot tenderly and winced in pain. He rested his elbows on his knees and ran both hands through his hair and growled out of frustration.

Remus was watching James carefully as Sirius strolled into the room, whistling a popular song. He greeted his friends with a nod before settling on the floor to resume a solitary game of Exploding Snap.

Sirius ceased his whistling when his eyes returned to a rather glum James. Nodding towards his best friend, Sirius asked Remus, "Something happen with Lily?" Both James and Remus nodded in reply. Shaking his head in pity, Sirius then noticed the blood on James' cheek. "Merlin, what happened! Did she hit you?" Expecting some other answer, Sirius was quite surprised when James nodded in the affirmative. The cards in front of Sirius exploded at that moment, adding to his surprise.

James removed his glasses and massaged the bridge of his nose, ignoring the explosion. "I don't get it," James said to no one in particular. "What's with her?"

Remus closed his book and set it on top of a pile of ashes. "Prongs, tell me what happened," Remus said, turning towards James.

James recounted everything to his friends. The botched apparation to the top of Lily's dresser; his attempt to right it; her arrival; the almost apology, interrupted by Lily's less-than-innocent underwear. "Then she chased me out her window, and I ended up back here." James concluded.

Silence stretched from all corners of the room as Sirius and Remus gaped at their friend. Sirius, eyebrows still smoking, broke the silence. "So…What you're telling us is…You didn't finish apologizing to Lily because you were too busy eyeballing her undies?" James nodded resignedly. A grin wide enough to rival the Grand Canyon spread across Sirius' face. "Wo-o-o-ow!" Sirius exclaimed, shaking his hand like he had just touched something hot. He rose to his feet and slapped James on the back. "Didn't think you had it in you, Prongs!" he said before settling in a nearby armchair.

"Oh shut up, Padfoot," Remus said, scowling at his smirking friend. "James is trying to get Lily to _not _despise him, remember?"

"Oh yeah," said Sirius thoughtfully. "Why does she hate him again?"

James answered this question. "Because I'm an arrogant, bullying toehead."

"I believe the term she used was 'toerag,' Prongs," Sirius said. An object that greatly resembled one of James' trainers went whizzing by Sirius' head, forcing him to duck. "Alright, alright! I'll stop talking!"

"Thank goodness," Remus said moodily. "Listen, Prongs. Why don't you just lay low until we go back to Hogwarts? Don't owl Lily, don't try and meet up with her, anything like that. It'll just make her angrier."

James lifted his eyes from the floor to meet Remus'. "Always the voice of reason, Moony." Remus recognized the pain in James' eyes that only a girl could bring. "It's funny…She won't even call me 'James' anymore."

Sirius and Remus eyed each other nervously as they watched their friend leave the room.

Hours later, back at number sixteen, Crown Close, things weren't much better for Lily.

Mr. Evans had spent the better part of an hour yelling at Lily regarding the sudden appearance of James Potter, every now and then resorting back to a rather risqué undergarment.

Petunia had announced her decision to move out of a house where strange men appeared and disappeared without warning, sparking another argument between Mr. Evans and one of his daughters.

After dark, when everyone had gone to sleep, Lily sat up in front of the fireplace. She held the written apology she'd received from James days ago in her hand, unfolded and read over several times.

Lily had no control over her hands as they tore the letter to shreds in front of her eyes. She picked a piece out of the pile of confetti to keep her place in the book she had been reading; Lily failed to notice this piece held the signature of James Potter. The paper was soon moved into the fireplace as Lily struck a match and threw it atop what was once a letter of sincere apology.

As Lily watched the paper burn she felt, for the first time, true hatred for James Potter.

JLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJ

**A/N:** Chapter 3 at last! I'm trying to coordinate the songs with the content and/or feel of the chapters from now on.

Remember, reviews motivate me to update sooner. So please review!


	4. Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn

**A/N:** Back with Chapter 4. Sorry for the delay. This, like the last 3 chapters, is just going wherever my fingers take it.

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, aside from a few original characters and a stapler. Everything else is in the possession of the brilliance of Ms. Rowling.

Chapter 4: Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn  
Hellogoodbye

September first arrived without ceremony in the Evans household and without word from James Potter. Mr. Evans had taken to adding extra hours to his workday at the hospital since the incident regarding James. Mrs. Evans was as busy as ever at her women's apparel shop in the center of downtown London. Petunia had been living with Vernon for a week, and had phoned her family once. Lily had stayed home for the remainder of the summer, using the time to visit her friends and allow the fact that this was her last year at Hogwarts to sink in.

"Lily! You're going to miss the train!" Mrs. Evans called up the stairs. Lily sighed. She _knew _she was forgetting something, but what was it? Shrugging, Lily closed her trunk and began to drag it out of her room. Just as she was about to close the door behind her, a gentle hoot came from the desk next to the window. Lily's little owl sat in her cage, head cocked to the side in innocent confusion. "Oh!" Lily exclaimed as she grabbed her new pet and dragged her trunk behind them. Mrs. Evans was already seated and ready to go by the time Lily reached the front door. With a wave of her wand Lily eased her trunk into the back of the car, slammed the door, and jumped in her seat and raced off for King's Cross Station.

The Evans women made it to the station with remarkable timing, allowing Mrs. Evans several minutes to fuss over her daughter. Once Lily was freed of her mother's grasp and safely across Platform 9 ¾, she removed the shiny silver Head Girl badge from her pocket and pinned it to the front of her shirt.

Lily had just hoisted her owl into the overhead rack in a compartment at the end of the Hogwarts Express before a voice greeted her at the compartment's sliding door.

"Why do you always beat me?" a female voice asked playfully. Lily turned around to see the smiling face of her best friend, Ambellina Prince.

With a grin of her own, Lily retorted, "Because I'm better than you."

Ambellina snorted good-naturedly, tossing her coffee-brown curls over her shoulder. "Wotcher, Lily. You might end up sounding like James Potter." Lily narrowed her eyes at her smirking friend, but was cut off by the arrival of a pretty Indian girl.

"Are you having another go at Lily and Potter?" Radha Rai asked Ambellina in a reproachful tone.

"Of course," Ambellina replied, her grin widening and blue eyes twinkling.

"And without me?" Radha cried, falling into a seat near the window. "You're still sore at James, huh Lils?"

Lily set the cage of her still nameless owl a little more to the left. "Can we please drop the subject?" Lily pleaded, looking frustrated. "The very last thing I want to think about is --"

"James Potter." The girls looked to the door of their compartment once again to find Remus Lupin looking rather shyly at them. A pink twinge crept into Radha's cheeks. "Sorry to disturb you, but the Prefects need to borrow Lily for about fifteen minutes." Lily, who had always been rather fond of the quiet boy, smiled and followed him from the compartment. Remus bid his farewells to the two remaining girls before departing for the front of the train.

"How was your summer, Lily?" Remus asked out of friendly politeness. He knew quite well how a small part of Lily's summer had been.

"It was alright," Lily said. "My sister got engaged to this great lump of a man, but other than that nothing too exciting." Remus laughed lightly at her side. "What about you, Remus? How did summer treat you?"

Remus waved hello to a sixth year Ravenclaw before answering. "Summer treated me well. I spent the last half of it at James' house with Sirius and Peter. Believe me; with those three around, there's never a dull moment." Lily chortled at his side; Remus took a deep breath. "Speaking of James…"

Lily stopped in her tracks and glared at her companion. "Bloody hell, Remus, please don't bring Potter into this."

Remus grabbed hold of Lily's arm. "You don't understand how miserable he's been, Lily, moping around like someone died." A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "A bit pathetic, really."

Snorting in disbelief, Lily took her arm back from Remus. "I doubt there's room enough in that overly inflated head of his for him to really be so upset about something like that."

The hopeful expression on Remus' face fell and he felt his eyes narrow in a sort of glare at Lily. He was always a little cranky after a transformation. "Haven't you noticed something different about him lately? He's changed a lot, y'know, ever since that day you yelled at him after O.W.L.s." Remus' expression softened. "You have noticed, right?"

Lily opened her mouth to protest but retracted the action. There had been something different about James. It had come about slowly, but the changes were noticeable: James had ceased hexing people in the corridors (with a few Slytherin exceptions); he'd limited his exhibitions with a stolen Snitch to the Gryffindor common room; he only ran his hands through his hair when he was either nervous or upset, something Lily had noticed before their excursion in Diagon Alley. He'd even gone so far as to not do any- well, _many_- unnecessary tricks with his broom during a Quidditch match. "Alright, you've got me," Lily said in defeat as they resumed their journey to the front of the train. Remus' expression brightened greatly. "He has changed. But what am I supposed to do about that? There's enough going on between Head Girl duties and my family and- and the war with You-Know-Who without worrying about keeping James Potter happy."

The smile Remus bore didn't falter for a second. "Just listen to his apology," he said. "I'm not saying you have to accept it, just listen to him."

The Prefect compartment was almost within reach. "I can do that," Lily said, closing the gap between her and the compartment.

"Wait," Remus said as Lily placed her hand on the door. "One more thing: Do you think you could call him 'James' instead of 'Potter'? It means a lot to him for some odd reason."

Lily felt a small tug at one of her heartstrings as she slid the door open. She hadn't realized how much calling him by his first name had meant. It seemed strange, and even a little silly to put so much emphasis on a simple name. But then again, it was Potter- er, James they were talking about.

For the first time since she'd received her Head Girl letter, Lily felt a pang of fear. The responsibility involved in being Head Girl was enormous. She and the Head Boy were in charge of every single Prefect, and their authority lay just under that of a professor. Shaking off her nerves, Lily smiled and entered the compartment in front of Remus. She noticed James sitting off to the side, looking up when Lily and Remus entered the room. The famous lopsided grin plastered itself on his face, and Lily could have sworn she heard one of the girls in the room sigh in adoration. James was about to speak, but decided a nod was safer. Lily nodded in return before addressing the Prefects. Slightly puzzled, James looked at Remus, who only mouthed the word "Later."

Lily launched into the explanation of the Prefect duties while James sat and watched; having never been a Prefect, he hadn't the slightest clue where to begin. He also enjoyed watching Lily, and had to stop himself from staring on several occasions. In fact, James was so involved in watching Lily that he failed to notice she had dismissed the rest of the Prefects and was about to leave the compartment herself. "Lily, wait," James said as he jumped to his feet.

Lily stopped in the doorway and turned to face James. "Can I help you, James?" she asked. Her tone sounded cold, something she hadn't intended.

Nevertheless, James smiled awkwardly at her. "Er, I just wanted to, uh, apologize." Lily continued to watch him blankly. "For Diagon Alley, as well as, uh," James continued, his face reddening in shame, "your house. It was a real git thing of me to do."

Lily didn't know where to begin. "I'm over Diagon Alley, James," she said, causing James' grin to turn into a relieved smile. Upon seeing his endearing smile, Lily felt guilty about what she had to say next. "I don't think you realize what you did by showing up to my house unannounced like that. You embarrassed me in front of my entire family, James, as well as my sister's fiancée." James' face fell; he'd known Lily Evans too long to know that something like embarrassment was not enough to sustain her anger towards him, and that she wasn't finished. "My father's rarely home anymore, and when he is he won't speak to me unless absolutely necessary. My parents blame me for my sister moving out of their house. The chest of drawers my great-grandfather built is in shambles; my mum's pretty sore about that."

James' heart, which had been rising since the instant he saw Lily, took a quick dive for his feet. "Blimey, Lily," he said, running his hand through his hair. "If I'd've known, I would have waited to give you back your book until today."

Lily couldn't help herself; she smiled. "Oh come on, James," she said. James looked at her and laughed. The laughter didn't contain a smidgen of malice or haughtiness, but a laugh out of good humor and relief. Satisfied, Lily bid him farewell and took off for the compartment containing her friends.

"Wait up, Lily, I'll go with you." Lily arched an eyebrow at James. "I have to find Sirius and Remus," he explained in all honesty. Lily nodded, and walked side-by-side with James down the train. They walked in silence before James attempted conversation. "You said your sister's getting married, yeah?"

Lily nodded once again. "She's getting married to this miserable Muggle named Vernon. I don't think anyone really likes him except for Petunia. They're getting married over holiday." Lily laughed a little, more to herself than anyone else. "Honestly, I think Petunia the Ice Queen is the only person on earth who would get married in the dead of winter."

James chuckled at her side. From what he'd heard of Petunia on previous occasions, 'Ice Queen' was a bit of an understatement.

The pair of them continued to speak of family and friends in the sort of closed way that recent acquaintances often do. There was a pause in their conversation, which was soon filled by James. "Have you found a name for your owl yet?" he asked. "I remember you were having trouble."

Lily glanced at him, surprised at his memory of such a trivial dilemma of hers. "No, I haven't," Lily replied. Smiling slightly from the corner of her mouth, she asked him, "Any suggestions?"

James pondered this for a moment before replying. "You could call her 'Parisa,'" James suggested. "It means 'Angel Face.'"

The compartment before which they were standing flew open as a tall, handsome boy with long, black hair jumped in front of James, waving around a small paper bag. "Brand new supply, Prongs! Arrived just before we took off! Honestly, I didn't expect Zonko's to deliver dungbombs so soon—"

"Ahem." Sirius looked at Lily, noticing her for the first time. A look of stern disapproval was easily discernible, enhanced by her folded arms and forceful breathing from her nose. James had to use every ounce of self-control he possessed to keep from sneaking a glance at the area he knew was so well-enhanced by Lily's folded arms.

The grin on Sirius' face didn't falter for a second as he spread his arms wide, as if to engulf Lily in a hug. He still held the bag of dungbombs clutched in his hand. "Evans!" Sirius exclaimed, leaning towards her. "How have you been? Wow, I haven't seen you since D- day before holidays!" James gave Sirius a warning look as he almost let slip that he'd followed James and Lily around Diagon Alley.

Lily stood her ground, unaffected by Sirius' charms. "Dungbombs aren't allowed, Black. You of all people should know that," Lily said in that cold, impersonal tone of hers that Sirius and James had heard so many times before. "I'm going to have to confiscate them."

Sirius fell to his knees in a flash. He loudly begged and pleaded with Lily, throwing his arms around her waist. Although James could tell this made Lily highly uncomfortable by the way she tried to pry him from her, James felt a vehement urge to hurt Sirius for the way he was touching her. "Ple-e-e-e-ease!" Sirius wailed, drawing attention from several nearby compartments.

"Alright, alright!" Lily hissed, eager to have the strange boy as far from her as possible. "You can keep the damn dungbombs!" Sirius jumped to his feet, beaming. "But," Lily said, raising a warning finger, "if I catch _one whiff _of those foul things, you'll have something much more important to you than dungbombs to worry about." James thought he saw Sirius turn a bit pale at he mention of Lily causing him bodily harm; a Lily Evans threat was never an empty threat. Lily turned to James, her gaze softer but still menacing. "I'll be seeing you around," she said, to which James nodded.

James and Sirius had just stepped into their compartment, which was already occupied by Remus and Peter, When Sirius had another stroke of genius. Lunging past James and back into the corridor of the train, Sirius called after Lily's retreating back. "Oi, Evans!" he shouted, causing Lily to turn and face him. "If you're not even going to consider going to Hogsmeade with James when he asks you, could you stop leading the poor boy on? We'd really like the old James back, if you don't mind!"

James' face paled in rage as Lily's tinged pink in embarrassment. Lily watched as Sirius was violently pulled from sight, more than likely by James, and heard the compartment door slam behind him. A cracking sound told her James had broken the glass. Her face still pink, Lily continued the walk back to her compartment alone.

Sirius let out a howl of pain and a few nasty words he would never let Mrs. Potter hear, but would gladly use on his own mother. The dungbombs fell from his grasp and were now scattered across the compartment floor. "What the hell is your problem, Prongs?" Sirius inquired angrily, rubbing the back of his head.

Brandishing his wand at his best friend, James just glared at Sirius. Remus Lupin spoke up in place of James, who was teeming with anger at the moment. "You really are hopeless," Remus commented from behind his book.

"What!" James exclaimed, turning toward his friend. "Why the hell am _I_ hopeless?"

"Not you, James," Remus said, closing his book. "Padfoot here."

Sirius looked angrily from James to Remus. "What the hell are you two going on about here?"

Setting his book down, Remus looked hardly at Sirius. "Have you ever taken a moment, Padfoot, to think that this may not all be a ruse for James to get Lily into Hogsmeade so he can snog her pants off? That Prongs here may actually be growing up?"

"Oh, come off it," Sirius spat. But, as he looked at James, who had taken to pacing the compartment with his lanky arms folded, Sirius' face fell a bit. "You mean to tell me Prongs here is in love?"

James stopped his pacing at the mention of the word, but did not speak. "Love," Remus said, "or very strong like."

Sirius got to his feet and stood abashed next to James. "Blimey, mate, I'm sorry."

"Forget it," James said, helping himself to one of the Chocolate Frogs from their small stash. "No harm done. Just don't be a git in the future, okay?"

Sirius grinned. Not as widely as usual, but still a genuine grin. "Deal." He bent down to start collecting the spilt dungbombs, careful not to set any off.

By now, Lily had reached her compartment. She walked in to find Radha and Ambellina crooning over her new owl.

"Oh, she's adorable, Lily," Radha cooed. "Does she have a name?"

The tiny owl hooted happily at all the attention. Lily noticed the delicate black ring around her face, enhancing the owl's angelic features. "Yeah," Lily said, smiling to herself. "Her name's Parisa."

JLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLJLLJLJLJL

**A/N**: Here's Chapter Four, which is considerably longer than the rest. I like the longer chapters, but they take a bit longer to get out. So tell me: Which do you prefer? Shorter chapters with a shorter wait, or longer chapters with a longer wait? You can tell me in a review (HINT, HINT). **_I love reviews._**

Speaking of reviews, I would like to thank my always faithful reviewer, **luckichrm**. You friggin' rock!

_Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince _was just released on the sixteenth of this month. For those of you who have not read it yet, I will tell you right now: tissues.

That's all for now!


End file.
